Staff report

 

KANNAPOLIS — Carson’s girls executed on back-to-back inbounds plays under the A.L. Brown basket, Laila Furr banked in two layups, and Carson head Chloe Monroe clapped her hands vigorously.

Every bucket is a small victory for the offensively challenged Cougars at this point, and at times they can even string a few together.

But there’s still a long way to go.

A.L. Brown cruised to a 52-23 win against the Cougars on Tuesday, as a fresh basketball year began for Carson with another setback.

Carson (0-10) played hard again, but struggled again against a quicker, stronger and older opponent. The Wonders already had beaten the Cougars 57-19 in China Grove and 60-17 at Catawba in the recent Dale’s Sporting Goods Sam Moir Christmas Classic.

The suspense was over quickly. The Wonders (8-2) led 15-0 after a quarter.

Carson didn’t get on the board until Julia Burleson made a baseline runner to open the second quarter.

The Wonders held a comfortable 29-8 lead at halftime.

Sadie Faulkner made three 3-pointers and scored 16 points to lead the Wonders.

Faulkner scored all eight of the Wonders’ points in the third quarter. Then she took a seat and got some rest. The Wonders have a tough week ahead, with Hickory Ridge on Wednesday and Lake Norman on Friday.

Furr scored a season-high eight for the Cougars, while Rylee Hedrick had seven.

Carson                0       8        8      7   — 23

A.L. Brown         15     14      8     15   — 52

CARSON — Furr 8, Hedrick 7, Burleson 3, Baldwin 3, McBride 2.

A.L. BROWN — Faulkner 16, Grier 6, Stevens 6, Robinson 6, Goode-Roberts 5, Dunning 5, McNeely 4, David 3, Klutz 1,